No. 17-1351
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
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INTERNATIONAL REFUGEE ASSISTANCE PROJECT, a project of the Urban
Justice Center, Inc., on behalf of itself; HIAS, INC., on behalf of itself and its
clients; MIDDLE EAST STUDIES ASSOCIATION OF NORTH AMERICA,
INC., on behalf of itself and its members; MUHAMMED METEAB; PAUL
HARRISON; IBRAHIM AHMED MOHOMED; JOHN DOES #1 & 3; JANE
DOE #2,
Plaintiffs – Appellees,
v.
DONALD J. TRUMP, in his official capacity as President of the United States;
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY; DEPARTMENT OF STATE;
OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE; JOHN F.
KELLY, in his official capacity as Secretary of Homeland Security; REX W.
TILLERSON, in his official capacity as Secretary of State; DANIEL R. COATS,
in his official capacity as Director of National Intelligence,
Defendants – Appellants.
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On Appeal from the United States District Court
for the District of Maryland, No. 17-cv-00361 (Chuang, J.)
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UNOPPOSED MOTION FOR LEAVE TO FILE BRIEF OF AMICI CURIAE
INTERFAITH COALITION IN SUPPORT OF APPELLEES,
AFFIRMANCE, AND OPPOSING MOTION FOR A STAY PENDING
EXPEDITED APPEAL
____________________________________
ROBERT D. FRAM
ALEXANDRA P. GRAYNER
KATHRYN BI
COVINGTON & BURLING LLP
One Front Street, 35th Floor
San Francisco, California 94111
Telephone: (415) 591-6000
Attorneys for Amici Curiae
Interfaith Coalition
KEVIN B. COLLINS
WILLIAM E. ZAPF
LIGIA M. MARKMAN
KARUN TILAK
MICHAEL BAKER
ANDREW GUY
COVINGTON & BURLING LLP
One CityCenter
850 Tenth Street, NW
Washington, DC 20001
Telephone: (202) 662-6000
UNOPPOSED MOTION FOR LEAVE TO FILE BRIEF OF AMICI CURIAE
INTERFAITH COALITION IN SUPPORT OF APPELLEES,
AFFIRMANCE, AND OPPOSING MOTION FOR A STAY PENDING
EXPEDITED APPEAL
All parties have consented to the filing of a brief on behalf of Amici Curiae
Interfaith Coalition. In an abundance of caution, Amici respectfully move the
Court to grant leave to file the brief filed separately herewith in support of
affirmance of the decision below and denial of Appellant’s motion for a stay
pending expedited appeal.
Amici are a coalition of individuals and organizations of diverse religions.
Although they profess different faiths, they are united in the belief that religious
tolerance is critical to the safety and wellbeing of our local and national
community. Section 2(c) of President Trump’s Executive Order No. 13,780
(March 6, 2017) (“Executive Order”), which by its plain language, structure, and
intent, discriminates on the basis of religion, is anathema to this core tenet that all
members of our coalition share.
Amici include:
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Congregation B’nai Jeshurun
The Muslim Public Affairs Council
The National Council of Churches
The Right Reverend Sally Dyck
The Right Reverend Andrew Dietsche
The Right Reverend Allen K. Shin
The Right Reverend Mary D. Glasspool
Imam Abdul Malik Mujahid
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The Sikh Coalition
The Right Reverend Lawrence C. Provenzano
The Right Reverend Marc Handley Andrus
Rabbi Joy Levitt
Reverend Curtis W. Hart
Congregation Beit Simchat Torah
Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum
Reverend Timothy B. Tutt
Rabbi Joel Mosbacher
Rabbi Frederick Reeves
Rabbi Peretz Wolf-Prusan
Rabbi Noa Kushner
Union Theological Seminary
Rabbi John Rosove
United Methodist Women
Rabbi James Ponet
The Hyde Park & Kenwood Interfaith Council
Rabbi Michael Strassfeld
IKAR
Rabbi Sharon Brous
Reverend Jeannette DeFriest
Rabbi Amichai Lau Lavie
Imam Suhaib Webb
Rabbi Ayelet Cohen
Hyattsville Mennonite Church
Women’s Alliance for Theology, Ethics, and Ritual
Reverend Julie Windsor Mitchell
Amici Curiae Interfaith Coalition’s participation in the case will provide
argument relevant to the Establishment Clause claim at issue in this appeal and the
motion for a stay. The brief demonstrates how Section 2(c) of the revised
Executive Order selectively targets six Muslim-majority nations for the travel ban.
The Executive Order expressly states that the Department of State’s Country
Reports on Terrorism 2015 (June 2016) (“Report”) informs the selection of which
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countries to include in the travel ban. The Report, however, describes at least two
Christian-majority countries (Venezuela and the Philippines) as allegedly
satisfying criteria that the Executive Order purports to apply to determine which
countries to include in the ban. Despite the alleged terrorism risks in these
countries that are outlined in the Report, these Christian-majority countries are not
included in the “Muslim-only” ban.
This analysis, by itself, establishes a violation of the Establishment Clause.
At the very least, this selective burdening of one nation over another opens the
door to consideration of the intent of the drafter of the travel ban.
In their appeal, Appellants argue that the district court erred in holding that
Section 2(c) violates the Establishment Clause. See Br. for Appellants at 35–53,
ECF No. 36. Appellants argue the same in the motion for a stay pending expedited
appeal. See Mot. of Defs.-Appellants for Stay at 15–18, ECF No. 35.
Accordingly, the proposed brief on behalf of Amici Curiae Interfaith Coalition is
relevant to both the appeal and the motion for a stay pending expedited appeal.
CONCLUSION
For the foregoing reasons, the Interfaith Coalition respectfully requests that
the Court grant the unopposed motion for leave to file the brief filed concurrently
herewith.
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DATED: March 29, 2017
Respectfully submitted,
By /s/ Kevin B. Collins
KEVIN B. COLLINS
kcollins@cov.com
WILLIAM E. ZAPF
wzapf@cov.com
LIGIA M. MARKMAN
lmarkman@cov.com
KARUN TILAK
ktilak@cov.com
MICHAEL BAKER
mbaker@cov.com
ANDREW GUY
aguy@cov.com
COVINGTON & BURLING LLP
One City Center
850 Tenth Street, NW
Washington, D.C. 20001-4965
Telephone: + 1 (202) 662-6000
ROBERT D. FRAM
rfram@cov.com
ALEXANDRA P. GRAYNER
agrayner@cov.com
KATHRYN BI
kbi@cov.com
One Front St., 35th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94111
Telephone: +1 (415) 591-6000
Attorneys for Amici Curiae Interfaith
Coalition
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CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that on March 29, 2017, I electronically filed the foregoing
with the Clerk of the Court for the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth
Circuit by using the appellate CM/ECF system. Participants in the case are
registered CM/ECF users and will be served by the appellate CM/ECF system.
COVINGTON & BURLING LLP
By:
/s/ Kevin B. Collins
KEVIN B. COLLINS

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